Tell Me How You Love Me Now
by whatthequack
Summary: Just when Sonny admits that she likes Chad, he shows up with a brand new girlfriend. Does fate want them to be together? ChadxSonny Chonny fanfic!
1. Carrots Don't Wear Uniforms

**A/N: Hey everyone! Sally here. It's been A LONG time since I posted/logged in here, LOL! Okay, so here is a brand new story for the new show, _Sonny With a Chance!_ I'm really loving this couple. PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW! More coming soon, hopefully!**

I think there was a lot to be said about Chad Dylan Cooper. He was undeniably good-looking, and it was impossible to forget his face. He was also undeniably conceited, and made you want to strangle him. But when you needed him, he was there for you. He cared about you. He had a heart, believe it or not.

Well, kind of.

I still didn't know what to think of him, even after four months of being on _So Random!_ But, ever since he pretended to be my biggest fan on the show, my feelings for him changed…a lot. I got this tingly feeling in my stomach when I saw him. I always thought I would say something wrong when I was around him. I laughed a little too loud, smiled a little too wide, and acted a little too…not me. Naturally, I would think that I had a crush on him. Except that I refused to admit that to myself.

Until now. I was helpless, falling head over heels for him. There was no denying it, so I might as well just say it out loud—well, in my head: I like Chad Dylan Cooper. I don't think 'love' was the case yet, but I definitely liked him…a lot.

I fell asleep on the couch that day, and I woke up with a jolt from a vibration on my cell phone. It was a text, from Tawni. It read: "Loser, get off the couch! Rehearsal's starting right now." I freaked and jumped out of bed, zipped on my carrot costume for our lunch sketch, and raced downstairs.

I found Nico, Grady, Zora, Tawni, and Marshall already doing the sketch. Luckily, I didn't have to come in until later. "Marshall!" I said, and looked around. Instead of the usual cafeteria setting, it had changed to a park scene. "What happened to the lunch sketch?"

"Ah, Sonny!" He turned around and motioned for me. "We, uh, had a change of plans. We are going to do the lunch sketch next week instead. Tawni thought of a great new one!"

I was taken aback. "Oh, well, uh, when do I come in?" I asked.

"Oh, uh, this one doesn't include you. Sorry, kiddo!" Marshall said. He gave me a big smile and turned back to the sketch. I frowned. What a waste of my time! I could be happily sleeping right now.

Just as I was about to turn and go back up to my room, I heard Chad's voice over my shoulder saying, "Nice costume." I turned around to see his smirking face. His gorgeous—but obnoxious—face.

"Ha ha," I said jokingly. "Well, it's better than wearing the same uniform over and over again."

"You are _so_ funny," he replied sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes. "What are you doing here anyways? I thought you were banned from here."

"Correction," interrupted Chad. "_You_ are banned from _our_ set. You never banned me."

"Our security guard should know our enemies by now."

"Maybe. But you just can't keep out a face like this," he said, and gestured to his face for what seemed like the fiftieth time today.

I rolled my eyes again. "Whatever. Why are you here? Got nothing to do over in your little drama-filled falls?"

Chad quickly got defensive. Insulting his show was like insulting his pride. "Our show isn't drama, it's _reality!_ How many times do we have to tell you guys?"

I laughed loudly, and Marshall quickly told me to quiet down. I glanced over at Tawni, who was looking at us carefully.

"Don't you have to be obnoxious somewhere else?" I said. "Your _face_ is starting to get me in trouble for not doing anything at all. And I want to take a nap."

"Is it that, or are you just out of comebacks?" he sneered.

"Is it that, or are you just out of comebacks?" I imitated in a high-pitched voice. "Get out!"

As I started to push him out the door, one of the airheads from MacKenzie Falls—Kristen—came in. "Chad, baby, we have to go rehearse," she said, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and kissing him lightly on the lips. Chad smiled and tipped her chin up to his face and kissed her back.

Instantly, I let go of Chad. My mouth dropped open. My heart stopped beating. Was it just me, or was it getting hot in here? My throat felt clogged suddenly, and I was having a hard time breathing. Chad turned around and looked at me as if he had forgotten I was there.

"See ya," he said, and turned around, walking with his arm on Kristen's shoulder. She turned around and laughed at me, as if she had defeated me at something. And she did. She had stolen Chad away from me. Just when I was opening up my heart to him, he tore it apart into a million pieces. I turned and ran towards my dressing room, tears welling up in my eyes.

**A/N: Hey everyone! Sally here. It's been A LONG time since I posted/logged in here, LOL! Okay, so here is a brand new story for the new show, _Sonny With a Chance!_ I'm really loving this couple. PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW! More coming soon, hopefully!**


	2. This Is What Heartbreak Feels Like

**A/N: Personally, I don't even know why I wrote this chapter. Lol. This is kind of just to show you how Sonny has changed after being heartbroken. And she tries to figure out how to make things go back to normal. Plus I wanted to update my story. I'm so sorry if I disappoint! Review please! xx Sally**

I went through the rest of the week in a daze. Every time Tawni made a snide remark at my clothing or makeup, I simply fake-laughed. I didn't even bother to make it sound real. Whenever I saw Chad, I felt like there were cotton balls in my throat. I swallowed, and there seemed to be a large rock sliding down my esophagus.

I slept in until twelve o'clock on Monday morning. I woke up, checked the time, and realized I had skipped the first two classes of our school period. I gasped. I jumped out of bed, put on my favorite pair of black skinny jeans, a white t-shirt that said, "You're a loser if you're trying to read my shirt", and some black Converse. Classic Sonny.

I bolted down the stairs and through the hall, accidentally knocking over Bert's, the janitor's, supply cart. "Oh, my gosh! I'm so sorry, Bert! But I have to get to class!" I felt terrible about not helping him, but I couldn't miss another class.

I ran into the class. Four heads whipped around to stare at me.

"Ah, Sonny," said Ms. Bitterman. "Finally decided to join us, didn't you?"

"I am so sorry, Ms. Bitterman—!" I began, but she quickly cut me off.

"No time for apologies. Your midterms are next week, we need to review. Please sit down or I will give you detention."

"Detention?" I cried. "I didn't even know we had detention here!"

"We will if you don't sit down!" she shrieked. Taken aback, I quickly sat in a desk next to Tawni and Zora.

"Where were you?" Tawni whispered.

"Sleeping," I said, a bit too loudly. Ms. Bitterman gave me a sharp look as she went over the United States Constitution. I lowered my voice. "I don't know how my alarm clock didn't wake me up. I screwed up big time. My mom is going to kill me when she finds out I ditched class."

"Well, I'll say!" said Zora. "My mom wouldn't even let me skip class for a dentist appointment! She paid the guy to work on my teeth _during_ class!"

"They can do that?" Tawni said.

"I guess they do if your mom threatens to punch their perfect teeth." Tawni gave a sickened look and went back to doodling in her notebook.

When the bell finally rang after what seemed like days, Nico and Grady both cast me weird glances. I worked up a fake smile. They fake-smiled back, and Nico whispered something to Tawni.

I dropped my head like a puppy and sat back down in the desk. I guess this was what heartbreak felt like. I'd never really had my heart truly broken by a boy…until now. What did he see in that girl anyways? The way she acted on MacKenzie Falls made her look like a robot. Her teeth were bleached too often, and her perms were beginning to give her a lot of split ends.

_No!_ I thought to myself. _I can't turn into a monster. I can't look for the bad in people, like Tawni. _I mean, Tawni's nice, but come on. She was so negative. I loved Tawni with all my heart, but there are days when I wish I could talk to someone real and the whole world didn't revolve around makeup, clothes, shows, and fame. I've always wanted to show her how much better life would be if she was positive.

I realized my mind had completely diverted from the subject of Chad, and I smiled. But then I remembered why I had been so depressed, and went right back to square one. I sighed. A tear fell from my eye. This wasn't who I am—crying, being depressed, sighing all the time. Why couldn't I just get over him? It's not like I had a chance with him anyways. With all those prettier girls strutting around the set, I was always going to be a girl in a carrot costume. The funny girl. The girl he would always go to when he wanted to insult someone. We don't even consider each other as friends. How could I break out of this zone? Flirting always ended up in teasing. And the teasing wasn't even flirty—in fact, it kind of hit your self-esteem like a bullet. How could I show him I wasn't satisfied just being that one girl? Are we even meant to be?

**A/N: Personally, I don't even know why I wrote this chapter. Lol. This is kind of just to show you how Sonny has changed after being heartbroken. And she tries to figure out how to make things go back to normal. Plus I wanted to update my story. I'm so sorry if I disappoint! Review please! xx Sally**


	3. The Closest Thing to a Friend

**A/N: Still no Chad yet :( Awww. Haha. Just a little Sonny-Tawni loveeee:D REVIEWREVIEWREVIEW! xx Sally**

On Saturday morning, I woke to find the sun shining and the birds chirping. The sunlight was streaming through my bedroom window. I looked around my room—what you would expect of a typical teenager. Blank white walls, posters of my favorite bands, a small desk with a lamp and photos of my family and friends back in Wisconsin. It sounds boring, but to me it was a reminder of who I really was.

And who I really was wasn't someone who cried over a boy.

Maybe Chad just wasn't "the one". Maybe these feelings were caused by some of the nauseating meatloaf I had eaten in the cafeteria a couple weeks ago. Maybe.

My mom drove me to the set at around eleven o'clock. I had slept at home that night because I didn't want to see anyone, face anybody's puzzle glances, fake smiles. I was about cried out; if there was some gland that held all your tears, it was probably dry as a bone right now.

I took a shortcut to the food table and smeared cream cheese on a bagel. I took it back to my room in a napkin to find Tawni and Zora in their pajamas, playing cards on my bed.

"Um…hi." I waved at them and worked up a smile.

"Sonny!" Zora cried. "Where were you? We all had a movie night!"

I laughed. "Oh, I just wanted to go home for a little. Stay with my mom and eat a home-cooked meal."

"Well, Zora slept in your bed, so don't sue me if you find anything illegal under the sheets," said Tawni. After studying her cards for a minute, she threw them in the air and screamed, "I win!"

Zora rolled her eyes and got off the bed. As she left the room, she muttered, "She cheated the whole time." I laughed again. It was nice to laugh.

It was quiet after Zora left. Tawni stacked the deck of cards and threw them on her vanity mirror. I lay on the couch, my head backed by a pillow.

"So…any other reasons why you've been acting even weirder than usual?" Tawni said, sitting in the chair to my left.

"Pshh, what are you talking about?" I said laughingly. Tawni was quiet. I looked at her and she gave me the yeah-like-I'll-believe-that-excuse look.

I sighed and sat up. "Okay," I said, frowning. "But you have to promise not to tell _anyone_."

Tawni nodded.

"I'm serious. Not even your best friend. Not even Marshall."

"Tawni's best friend _is_ Tawni!" she said airily. I just looked at her. "Oh, right. So you were saying…?"

"Well, I kind of sort of like someone. And for a minute, I thought he liked me too. But then he showed up with his girlfriend and now I just feel like a reject and a loser for believing that."

"Does this someone have blonde hair and blue eyes?"

"Yeah…"

"Does everyone else on set hate him?"

"Yes…"

"Is he annoying and obnoxious in every possible way?"

"I guess so."

"Is he rude to people and does he take advantage of—?"

"_Yes, it's Chad!_"

Tawni laughed so hard and for so long, I thought someone had spiked her soda. Her eyes crinkled up at the edges and she was out of breath. When she started crying, a little mascara at the edge of her eyelashes dripped down. She finally stopped after ten minutes.

"Okay, it's really not that funny."

"Yeah…it is!" she said, panting. She got up and started cleaning off the mascara, still smiling and holding back laughter.

"Well, I like him, and that's that. Now what do I do?" I cried helplessly.

"Well, you have to do something different with your look. Get him to notice you. He already knows what you look like on an average day. Now all you need is some snazzing up."

It was actually a pretty good idea. "Okay…like what?"

"Oh, I dunno…maybe a new hairstyle? New wardrobe? You know, I've never seen you wear shorts…" Tawni opened her large closet and showed me her selection of shorts. They were in every different color and pattern. I groaned. This was going to be a long haul.

**A/N: Still no Chad yet :( Awww. Haha. Just a little Sonny-Tawni loveeee:D REVIEWREVIEWREVIEW! xx Sally**


	4. Waiting for Your Call

**A/N: YAYYYYY FOR CHAD BEING IN HERE! Please review! Some of it doesn't make sense but I was kinda out of it as I wrote this chp :D xx Sally**

By the end of the week, I was transformed into a completely new person. Tawni gave me a new hair product that made my hair seem bouncier and shinier. She showed me how to use lighter colors for my lips to give my face a softer look. She made me accept my naturally wavy hair and taught me how to make it look really good. She also showed me what types of bottoms looked good on me and how I could add scarves or a necklace to my "simple" outfits.

"You know, if this acting thing doesn't work out, you should be a makeup artist or something," I said on Thursday as Tawni sprayed my locks into place.

She laughed to herself. "No, I don't think I'll be forgotten for long."

Once she was finished with my hair, I said, "Wow, Tawni—this is great! But…now I need to find a way to show myself to Chad. I can't…ask him to hang out or anything. Everyone's already suspicious enough."

"Relax," replied Tawni. "The network's holding a birthday party for the CEO on Saturday, remember? Chad's probably going to be there kissing up to him."

"Or kissing his girlfriend," I said quietly.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing." I sat inspecting my hair while Tawni heated up the curling iron. "I thought we already curled my hair."

"No, silly, this is for _me_." I watched as Tawni twisted a piece of her blonde hair onto the iron, curled it up, and held it for ten seconds. She let loose a spirally curl and sprayed it into place. I told her I was going to get some strawberries from the food table and left the room. Suddenly, my phone mooed. I reached over for it and looked at the caller ID: Chad.

I freaked. Was this a prank or was this really him? Was I dreaming? Did I know another Chad? I pressed "answer" and nervously said, "Hello?"

"Hey, uh, it's…Chad." I recognized the scratchy, warm tone of his voice. It was him!

"Oh…" I started. Should I play it safe and be rude, or should I do something different? "Oh, hi. How's it going?"

"Good?" Chad's voice was puzzled at my polite response. I could just imagine his face right now. "You're going to that party on Saturday, right?"

"Yeah, why?" Could this be? Was Chad asking me to the party? When did I get so sweaty?

"Well, I wanted to know what you were buying for him. The CEO," he answered. My heart dropped and I gulped. It felt like there were rocks falling in my stomach. I struggled to hide the disappointment in my voice.

"Um, I think we're all…buying him something together tomorrow," I lied. I was pretty sure everyone had already bought their own presents; I had just been distracted by all of this Chad stuff.

"Oh." Chad sounded annoyed.

"Did you buy him something already?" I asked.

"No, that's why I called. I wanted to make sure my present was better than yours," he said, laughing to himself.

"Ugh. Why do you _always_ have to be better than everyone else? Is it, like, one of your stupid rules?"

"No, I just don't like your show." _Your show._ He said he didn't like the show, not _I don't like you_! "It's pretty immature."

"Your face is immature," I said, and I actually laughed. At my own joke. Lame? I think so.

To my surprise, Chad laughed too. This was weird. _Really_ weird. But it was a good weird.

My self-esteem had suddenly boosted. And without thinking, I came right out and asked him: "So do you want to come with us?"

"Huh?" Chad seemed just as surprised as I was after I said it. "You're being serious? Shopping? With _everyone_?"

"Uh, yeah. I guess." I slapped my forehead. I couldn't keep lying. "Actually…they all just sort of gave me their money and I'm supposed to go buy something. If you wanna come, since I'm going to be alone."

"Um…sure. Tomorrow…?" Chad said it slowly, still surprised.

I couldn't hide the smile in my voice. "Tomorrow."

**A/N: YAYYYYY FOR CHAD BEING IN HERE! Please review! Some of it doesn't make sense but I was kinda out of it as I wrote this chp :D xx Sally**


	5. Love is a Battlefield

**A/N: No worries, this is not the end :) I know I haven't updated in awhile but here is the fifth chapter. I will try to write some more, but now that school has begun I can't make any promises. REVIEW & I'LL LOVE YOU FOREVER AND EVER! xx Sally**

That night, I slept for two hours. I couldn't stop thinking about tomorrow. Questions ran through my head, back and forth. Would it be good? Would it be bad? What should I say? Should I just make small talk?

At noon, I picked out a pair of white shorts, my lucky black Beatles t-shirt, and borrowed a pair of Tawni's purple Converse. It didn't exactly match, but I liked it. My hair was still curly but kind of messed up, so I ended up washing it and redoing it for half an hour. I didn't know how Tawni could do this every day. I straightened my bangs and used hairspray to keep everything stiff, since I heard it was supposed to rain today. Then I used a thicker eyeliner pencil, a salmon pink lip gloss, and curled my eyelashes. I used some compact too—I don't like to use it, but I was starting to break out.

All this took me an hour and so I decided to skip lunch just to keep my teeth white. But I was starving so I stole a pack of gum from under Tawni's pillow—her secret stash. I held my phone in my hand and sat back on the sofa, thinking and smiling and getting that butterfly feeling in my stomach.

I ended up dozing off once again, partly because I was really tired from not sleeping, and I woke up two hours later. It was 3 o'clock. No text messages, no missed calls, no voicemail. Maybe he had to finish up something for Mackenzie Falls, I told myself. They did have a new season coming up. I was still tired as ever so I fell asleep again—there was nothing better to do.

Three hours later. Still nothing. It was 6 and everyone was getting ready for dinner. I could feel the tears coming up but I fought them back. Had he misunderstood? Maybe he wanted to go at night? I unwrapped my third stick of gum and popped it into my mouth. The spearmint flavor burned into my taste buds but I could care less.

Should I text him or would it make me seem too eager? Or should I just leave it alone? I didn't want to wait so I just texted and asked when he was coming.

My phone vibrated. I jumped and grinned. It was him! It had to be him! Who else would be texting me right now? But my heart dropped lower than my feet when I saw that it was just Grady. I pressed _Read_ and looked. _We're all going out to dinner, wanna come? _Should I just go? But what if Chad really did come? Then he would think _I_ stood him up. _No, thanks, I think I'm just going to head home now :)_, I texted back.

I switched on the TV and channel surfed for another two hours. I didn't want to fall back asleep but I did. I hadn't been sleeping very well anyways. I woke up at 11. Nothing, still. I bit my lip to hold back the tears but they just kept coming. I sobbed and shook and threw my face into the pillow. Why did it always have to happen to me, of all people? I took a chance and asked him to hang out, but no. He just decides he's too cool to be hanging out with…me. That I'm _never_ going to have a chance with him. He really did hate me. What was I thinking? Why did I really believe he would be different with me?

I cried myself to sleep. This had to be the _worst_ night ever. My makeup was probably all over the place and my hair was probably tangled and poofy but did I care? No. What was the point of all this work when boys don't really give a crap? Why do girls always spend so much time looking to impress boys when we all know that they will never notice?

I dreamed of Chad that night. I dreamed he really had come and we really had gone shopping and we kissed. A good night kiss, like in all those cheesy movies. He had smiled at me and laughed at all my jokes, and I had snorted like I always do around guys I liked.

"Sonny," said Dream-Chad. "Sonny, wake up. _Sonny!_"

I started and my eyes shot open to see Tawni's face looking over me. It looked like it was still dark outside and I heard rain pattering against my window. I burst into tears once again.

"Tawni," I wailed, like a little kid. "He stood me up!" I sat up and just kind of hugged her. Awkward as it was, Tawni still hugged back.

"Oh, geez," she said. She patted my shoulder uncomfortably. "When I get my hands on that kid, I'm gonna…!" She trailed off, not knowing what she would do. I didn't care because at least she was being supportive.

"How about we get you cleaned up?" Tawni was being really sweet, actually. I didn't want to be pitied, but at the same time I did. I nodded, and as we went over to her vanity mirror I checked the clock. It was 8, but since my window was closed I had thought it was still nighttime. Tawni let me use her eye makeup removing solution and I wiped my smeared eyeliner. It made me look like a freaky emo kid. I washed all the compact off my face, but it was still cakey in some spots. Tawni just shrugged and pointed to the shower. I washed all of it off with soap, but my eyes had formed bags from all the crying and my nose was red, so I just used concealer in some spots.

Tawni had left for final rehearsal and I knew I had to pull myself together for my castmates. I took a deep breath before leaving the room and walked down the hall, head held up high. It wasn't until I had gotten all the way to the bottom of the stairs that I realized I had left my script in my room. I already knew the lines, but I liked to keep them there with me, as reassurance.

I darted back up, but then felt a sharp pain in the bottom of my high-heeled suede boots. I took it off as I walked and found a paperclip in it. How did a paperclip get into my boots? As I thought about this, I slammed straight into someone.

"Oh, my gosh, I'm so sorry—!" I started to say, and then looked up straight into Chad's crystal blue eyes. I sucked in my breath and my mouth turned downwards.

"_You._" I squeezed my eyes shut as I felt the tears.

"Sonny, wait!" he shouted, and grabbed my arm.

"Why, Chad, why?" I yelled. "I waited for you yesterday, but no, you just didn't want to show up! So tell me, why should I wait for you now?"

"Because," he said, still holding my arm. "Just…let me explain."

"Explain what? Why you decided to blow me off when I _finally_ found the courage to ask you to hang out? Why you couldn't have even come up with a lame excuse? Why I've been breaking my back just to get you to feel…" I stopped. Should I say it? _Well, it's now or never_, said the voice in my head. "To feel the same way for me as I feel about you. It's bad enough for you to just rub your stupid little girlfriend in my face, but to do this is just plain pathetic. If you didn't want to go with me, you could have just said so, instead of being such a…such a _coward_!"

"I—Sonny, I just…" Chad's mouth was open but no sound came out.

"I knew it," I snapped. "I don't know why I even _believed_ that you would be different with me. Why did I think that you would change, just for me? I'm just another stupid girl in your stupid life. And I do_ not_ want to hear your stupid explanation. I am so tired of you treating me like crap and always putting me down. Before, I thought it was because you liked me in some twisted way, but now? Now I just know that every single thing you said to me was true. And that, that is the _only_ real thing about you, Chad."

I pulled his arm off me and turned around, storming back to my dressing room. But I didn't look back.

**A/N: No worries, this is not the end :) I know I haven't updated in awhile but here is the fifth chapter. I will try to write some more, but now that school has begun I can't make any promises. REVIEW & I'LL LOVE YOU FOREVER AND EVER! xx Sally**


	6. Hate That I Love You

My whole body was shaking with anger. Tears sprung to my eyes but I quickly wiped them away and exhaled. I closed my eyes and felt my body sliding against the door. What did I just do?

The night of the party arrived, and I found myself blankly staring at my reflection in the mirror. I had just gotten out of the shower. No makeup on, nothing. Just a bare, natural face in the mirror. That's all I ever would be, anyways. And if Chad didn't like me for that, then fine. Because I did _not_ want to change myself for him. I needed to find somebody who would want me for…me. I hated that I tried so hard around Chad.

So I ditched all my makeup and went in what I was wearing—an old vintage T-shirt and a pair of blue jeans with Converse. A simple, comfortable outfit. I probably should have worn a dress, seeing as everyone else did, but I didn't care anymore. This was _definitely_ not my week.

I drove to the party with my radio on, but instead of listening to all that overplayed mainstream crap, I turned back to my old style—alternative rock. Nickelback, Daughtry, stuff like that. It was probably the most peaceful I'd been the whole week.

I stopped at the under-21 club we were holding the party at and just sat in my car for ten minutes in silence. My keys jingled from the ignition and I heard an engine rumbling from behind me. I glanced in my rearview mirror but couldn't make out the face of who it was. Oh, well. Probably someone who worked at the network.

I leaned my seat back and stared through the sunroof at the moon. It was a gorgeous night out in Hollywood. Who would have thought, four months back, that I would be here today? In Hollywood, on a TV show, in a car with a freaking _sunroof_?

Someone was tapping at my tinted windows. My head snapped and there he was: Chad. He'd gotten a haircut and his honey-colored hair no longer reached his ears. His eyes sparkled in the moonlight. He was smiling and waving at me.

Chad? Smiling _and _waving? Chad was _definitely _not a waver. Yet with this one smoldering look my heart fluttered again. I guess the sparks were still there.

He pointed down towards the lock. He wanted to come in! Why on earth would he want to come into my car? I still obliged and flipped the lock open. Chad opened the door and sat in the passenger seat.

"Um…hey," he said awkwardly, brushing his hair back. I said nothing. "What are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be inside?"

"I don't want to go inside," I said coldly. I stared straight into his eyes with the sternest look possible. It seemed to do the trick. He quickly switched his gaze to the floor.

"Nice…jeans?" he tried again.

"Okay, this is ridiculous," I said finally. "I don't know what you're trying to do, but this small talk isn't helping."

"Didn't think so," said Chad. "I'm trying to apologize. I was a jerk, and I know it. I _am_ a jerk, but I was an even bigger one to you." He turned to me with a hopeful smile. My expression was emotionless. Finally, after five minutes in silence, I spoke.

"Why didn't you come?"

Chad looked down at the gearshift between us. "I-I don't really know. Honestly. I was…scared, I guess."

"Of what? Am I scary or something?" I asked angrily.

Chad sighed as he struggled to find his words. "I'm not scared of you, necessarily…I'm just scared of what I'm feeling." I felt his hand on mine. It was warm. He brought it to his chest and gripped it with both his hands. He looked straight into my eyes. I'm sure the look on my face was incredulous. "I really, really like you, Sonny. I've always liked you, and no matter how many girls you've seen me with, none of them can compare to you."

My mouth opened partially. Was this really happening? I could feel my adrenaline pumping.

"You're funny, nice, smart, and pretty. You're everything I wish I could be." Chad faltered. "Except for the pretty part, but you know what I'm saying."

"I—Is this serious, Chad? Am I on hidden cameras or something?" I started glancing frantically around my car. Chad laughed.

"No, I'm one hundred percent serious. I really like you, Sonny, and I hope you still like me." His hands were still wrapped around mine. He leaned in closer, closer. His face was so close to mine. If only I had some dramatic music for this moment! His lips finally touched mine. We kissed for what seemed like days. When he finally let go, I lingered to his nose, eyes still closed.

"I hate you, Chad."


End file.
